This story map explores 19 years of particulate matter (PM 2.5) in the air we breathe. This is done by exploring a few different things:

Recent PM 2.5
19-year Average PM 2.5
Human Impact
Trends

The collection of maps shown in the story highlight different patterns of air quality as seen by particulate matter (PM 2.5) concentrations. Maps were created from this Global Particulate Matter (PM 2.5) between 1998-2016) Living Atlas layer. The data is aggregated from NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC) gridded data into country boundaries, administrative 1 boundaries, and 50 km hex bins. The unit of measurement is micrograms per cubic meter.

PM 2.5 are small particulate matter of 2.5 microns or less in diameter that are in the air we breathe. These tiny particles can be ingested into your lungs and bloodstream, causing a great risk for cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. They can come from many different sources such as power plants, vehicles, fires, dust, and many others.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO): “Ambient (outdoor) air pollution in both cities and rural areas was estimated to cause 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide per year in 2016; this mortality is due to exposure to small particulate matter of 2.5 microns or less in diameter (PM2.5), which cause cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and cancers.” Studying where PM 2.5 concentrations exist can help policymakers form new laws to help protect the health of their population.

Some of the things we can learn from these maps:

What is the average annual PM 2.5 value over 19 years? (1998-2016)
What is the annual average PM 2.5 value for each year from 1998 to 2016?
What is the statistical trend for PM 2.5 over the 19 years? (downward or upward)
Are there hot spots (or cold spots) of PM 2.5 over the 19 years?
How many people are impacted by the air quality in an area?
What is the death rate caused by the joint effects of air pollution?

Citations:

van Donkelaar, A., R. V. Martin, M. Brauer, N. C. Hsu, R. A. Kahn, R. C. Levy, A. Lyapustin, A. M. Sayer, and D. M. Winker. 2018. Global Annual PM2.5 Grids from MODIS, MISR and SeaWiFS Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) with GWR, 1998-2016. Palisades, NY: NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). https://doi.org/10.7927/H4ZK5DQS. Accessed 1 April 2020

van Donkelaar, A., R. V. Martin, M. Brauer, N. C. Hsu, R. A. Kahn, R. C. Levy, A. Lyapustin, A. M. Sayer, and D. M. Winker. 2016. Global Estimates of Fine Particulate Matter Using a Combined Geophysical-Statistical Method with Information from Satellites. Environmental Science & Technology 50 (7): 3762-3772. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b05833.